Yasaka Masamune

All-wood 2 reviews

Blade description:

The Yasaka Masamune is a table tennis blade designed for advanced players who want a combination of speed, control, and consistency. With an overall rating of 7.9 out of 10, this blade scores 8.1 for speed, 8.6 for control, and a perfect 10 for consistency.

The Yasaka Masamune has a 5-ply construction, with an outer layer of limba and inner layers of ayous and carbon. This combination of materials gives the blade a medium stiffness and a hardness rating of 6.7. The result is a blade that is fast and powerful, but still maintains a good level of control.

The Yasaka Masamune is a versatile blade that can be used for a variety of playing styles. It is well-suited for both offensive and defensive players, and it can be used with a variety of rubbers. However, it is particularly well-suited for players who like to loop and counterattack.

One of the standout features of the Yasaka Masamune is its consistency. This blade provides excellent feedback, allowing players to make precise shots even under pressure. It is also very forgiving, making it a good choice for players who are still developing their skills.

Overall, the Yasaka Masamune is an excellent blade for advanced players who want a combination of speed, control, and consistency. Its versatility makes it a good choice for a variety of playing styles, and its exceptional consistency makes it a great option for players who are looking to improve their game.

Recent Reviews

#1 — June 2023

I am a player who has trained for 4 years and enjoys testing some equipment. I like the style in which Satoshi Aida plays. In Ukraine, we have Nikolay Telnoy playing inverted rubber defensive play, but there is much less forehand attack compared to Aida. Telnoy uses an oversized blade, which I don’t like, so I can’t just copy his equipment and train with it.

I was trying to do this with Aida equipment. But my expectations from this Yasake blade were wrong. I expected less vibration from this thickness, but for me, those vibrations are good news; I also expected speed in the range from all to off- but it’s rather off- to off or even the beginning of off+.

I played in the past with a Yinhe Venus V-12 with a hinoki outer layer and it was good with hard rubbers, but this blade is too speedy for me, especially with hard rubber. I still wait for Rakza Z now, but I tested it with Rising Dragon on BH and for me, it’s much harder to use it compared with DHS Hurricane 3 38 with booster, even for chop.

In my opinion, it’s not a good blade for beginners, especially for beginner defenders. My current combination is Tibhar Defense Plus, and it is much more stable and easy to use with hard rubber, as Yinhe Big Dipper spin and gives more control on chop, but also with hard rubber, it allows attacking with almost the same speed as this Yasake Masamune (on a hard strike, it really near the old allwood off+ blade but slower than most carbon blades). BTW, ST handle here is one of the best I tested (it is thick enough for me).

I will test it with a more early combination with Aida used, mb it will fit better for a non-pro player using this style.

#2 — August 2022

Yasaka Blade Review

As a Yasaka collector, I believe this is one of the best blades Yasaka has ever produced. I own an ST Masamune blade with Rakza Z 1.8mm rubber on the forehand and Rakza Soft 2.0mm rubber on the backhand. After a week of testing, I’ve found that this combination performs well for spin, chopping, and blocking. Topspin shots are particularly easy to execute with this blade. I plan to experiment with long pimple rubber on the backhand in the future.

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